Gums, Resins, 



422 



[Mat 1908. 



cattle seldom eat the grass, and that 

 periodic fires but improve its growth. 

 In practice, however, it has been found 

 that when the clumps, whatever their 

 vigour, are periodically subjected to 

 these influences, they, in course of time, 

 grow stunted, stalky and leafless. In 

 the artificial propagation of the crop, 

 therefore, for the highest purposes of 

 economic utility, it responds most 

 readily when it is grown under protec- 

 tion from both grazing and fire. The 

 actual cultivation of the species is simple. 

 At the commencement of the rains, 

 mature clumps should, after selection, 

 be carefully teased out into the culms of 

 which they consist. These culms, with 

 the roots attached, after the curtailment 

 of the upper portions of their blades to 

 within 8 or 12 inches of their bases, 

 furnish the most suitable planting mate- 

 rial. Unlike the allied Citrouella grass 

 (Andropogon Schoenanthus), Lemon- 

 grass rarely produces seed. Even should 

 the latter be sufficiently available for 

 the purposes of stocking a farm of the 

 species, the risk from poor or indifferent 

 germination and the greater length of 

 time that will be requisite for the crop 

 to establish itself and attain to the age 

 or size ol commercial exploitability must 

 always be regarded as salient arguments 

 against attempts at its artificial repro- 

 duction from seed. Offsets, on the other 

 hand, because they furnish a safer, 

 quicker-growing, and more readily and 

 universally available material are, as a 

 rule, to be preferred to seed. The tren- 

 ches or furrows, as the case may be, 

 should be evenly laid out and as straight 

 as possible ; a width of a foot and a depth 

 of six inches would provide the neces- 

 sary stocking space. The trenches, 

 when ready, should be dressed with 

 manure to within an inch or two of the 

 ground surface and watered copiously if 

 there be no rain. The area to be planted 

 up being thus laid out and the offsets 

 to stock it ready to hand, one or more 

 of the latter should be set out at inter- 

 vals of two or three feet from one 

 another along the middle of each of the 

 trenches. It is essential that the plant- 

 ing be deep and firm. Should it be not 

 raining at the time of the operation, 

 the trenches should be watered im- 

 mediately after it. Until the offsets 

 shall have struck root the trenches, 

 varying with the degree of dryness of 

 the air, should be watered so as to be 

 kept just moist. Weeding the area 

 would be scarcely necessary particularly 

 when, after the plants shoot up, they 

 expand their blades and develop into 

 clumps ; thereafter, all but the hardiest 

 weeds are speedily and effectually sup- 

 pressed, the few that persist being 

 dug up and destroyed. As a rule, the 



less the offsets are crowded in the 

 furrows, the larger will the clumps that 

 develop from them be. The trenches 

 themselves, from centre to centre, being 

 no less than three feet apart, the offsets 

 need not be put out closer than the same 

 distance from one another. Under this 

 method of stocking the area, 4,840 single 

 plants could be put out per acre of land. 

 In localities such as enjoy the benefits 

 of neavy or prolonged rainfall in the 

 monsoon, single plants will ordinarily 

 be sufficient to lead to the successful 

 establishment of clumps. On the Mala- 

 bar Coast as well as in some of the moist 

 districts of Lower Burma, lemon grass 

 clumps two feet in diameter have deve- 

 loped from single offsets in the tenth 

 month from their being put out. In 

 drier regions their establishment is more 

 difficult ; in such, therefore, it would be 

 safe to put out not less than three off- 

 sets at each spot to be planted up. 

 Thus, 4,840 x 3 or 14,520 plants would be 

 required to stock an acre of land. A 

 healthy mature clump furnishing no 

 fewer than 100 separate plants, 146 

 clumps would fc>e just more than enough 

 to meet the demand for planting-mate- 

 rial- Of the 4,840 planted spots, suppos- 

 ing that from unavoidable causes only 

 2,000 attained to exploitable size at the 

 end of the second year, these would be 

 large enough to furnish as many bundles 

 of the grass, each one foot in girth, 

 suitable for distillation. When com- 

 mitted to the still directly aftercrop- 

 ping, 100 such bundles yield a quart of 

 the essential oil. As there are 40 fluid 

 ounces in one quart, the yield in ounces 

 amount to 2,000 x40-r 100 or 800. The 

 selling price of Lemon grass oil in the 

 London Market varies from 6 to 8 pence 

 an ounce ; so that the value there of the 

 produce obtainable from a single crop 

 on an acre of plantation, calculated at 

 the lowest rate of 6 pence per ounce, 

 amounts to 800 x 6~l2x 20=£20=Rs. 300 

 At least four crops could be obtained in 

 the year from the same plot, or a total 

 value of Rs. 300 x 4 = 1,200 realized from it 

 annually. The expenditure for clearing, 

 ploughing, laying out, stocking, protect- 

 ing, and maintaining for two years one 

 acre of plantation would not exceed Rs. 

 200, as per details furnished below :— 



1. Clearing grass land at Rs, 10 per acre 1C 



2. Ploughing 5 ,, 5 



3. Trenching „ 10 ,, 10 



4. Fencing „ 30 „ 30 



5. Fire-protection ,, 5 ,, 5 



6. Planting material „ 5 ,, 5 



7. Manuring and planting 10 ,, 10 



8. One cooly for watching, 



weeding and watering 



for 24 months ,, 5 per month 120 



9. Rent or tax ,, 2-8 per year 5 



Total ... 200 



